The quintessential live band, Pittsburghâ€™s Rusted Root celebrates their 20th anniversary this year. Formed in the early 90â€™s by singer/guitarist Michael Glabicki, Rusted Rootâ€™s worldly style quickly charmed fans of roots music and world rock.

To date, they have released 7 albums and sold over 3 million records worldwide. After debuting in 1992 with the self released Cruel Sun, Rusted Root signedÂ with Mercury Records and released the 1994 platinum selling breakthrough When I Woke, which featured the massive hits Send Me On My Way, Ecstasy, and Martyr.

Their huge success allowed the band to tours with Santana, The Grateful Dead, Dave Matthews Band, The Allman Brothers Band, HORDE Festival and, perhaps most notably, the highly coveted support role on the landmark Jimmy Page/Robert Plant reunion tour.

In 1996, the hard-touring Rusted Root returned with Remember, which was followed by 1998â€™s Rusted Root. In 2002 the band reemerged with Welcome To My Party. In 2004, the band released a double live album aptly entitled Rusted Root Live. This double set was the second release Rusted Rootâ€™s Touchy Pegg label, following the re-release of the newly remastered Cruel Sun in 2003.

Along the way, Rusted Root has also issued three EPs (Evil Ways, Live, and Airplane), a home video (Rusted Root Live), and had songs placed in film and TV soundtrack tracks such as Twister, Mathilda, Home For the Holidays, Party of Five, Charmed, Homicide, and Ice Age. What was indubitably a first for Rusted Root was that NASA engineers chose Send Me On My Way as “wake-up” music for the Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity, for Sol 21. Send Me On My Way was most recently used in a set of Enterprise Rental Car commercials in 2011 and 2012.

In May 2009, Rusted Root released Stereo Rodeo, their first studio album in 7 years. Of Stereo Rodeo, band founder and leader Michael Glabicki says, “We named our record Stereo Rodeo after a song that I started writing back when we were recording our last studio record. Itâ€™s really just a great name.â€

â€œWe were all just so into the music,â€ says vocalist/percussionist Liz Berlin about the recording process, â€œthe synergy and excitement on this album is so fresh and energizing.â€

â€œIt is one of the most powerful albums we have ever recorded,â€ agrees bassist/vocalist Patrick Norman.

The band is currently in the studio recording their new album, tentatively titled Fortunate Freaks, after a song on the upcoming release. Due out for a fall 2012 release, the disc will mark the groups 20th anniversary year. â€œOur last record was to let people know that we were back and were making music again,â€ Glabicki said. â€œWith this new one, weâ€™re not only back, weâ€™re back to our old selves. [The new album] is very danceable and energetic,â€ he said. â€œItâ€™s happier than the last record but, more than anything, we returned to our rock roots. I think itâ€™s something fans will be happy with. We have a few more songs to go, and weâ€™re really hoping this will be out in the summer.â€

To help support the making of this new album, Rusted Root created the Fortunate Freaks Unite! We are Rusted Root Campaign. This fan-funding campaign provided the fans the opportunity to contribute to the making of the album, while receiving some once in a lifetime opportunities. â€œRusted Root is a state of mind shared and explored by many people we are a community that supports one another. The fans are as much a part of this as anyone. It is an interesting time in history and fan funding is a great way to point out the obvious; we are a band that relies on the energy of our fans.â€

As to what youâ€™ll hear at an upcoming Rusted Root show, â€œWeâ€™ve been working on a new album, so our set is a really cool mix of old classic Rusted Root and the new songs,â€ Liz Berlin says. â€œItâ€™s been fun to play them. A lot of the development of (the new album) has happened on stage; what fans have been into has helped with the direction of the songs.â€

Rusted Root will be touring relentlessly throughout 2014, playing their new music as well as some of the faithful fans favorites.

About The Author

Hailing from Boston and now residing in the Metro Detroit area, Mick has spent several years photographing concerts and interviewing musicians in the music industry. After spending a few years shooting and writing for MOTORCITYBLOG.net, he founded and started the National Rock Review in the fall of 2013. Recruiting staffers from around the world, he has led the National Rock Review team in to a respected and established publication in the online music news/press industry in a short period of time.